Leeds Rhinos out to maintain flying start in Women's Super League clash with Featherstone Rovers

England squad member Chloe Kerrigan, playing in the centres, was among the try scorers when Rhinos kicked off their season with a 68-16 win over York City Knights two weeks ago.

Rovers were beaten 40-6 by Castleford Tigers the same afternoon, but Kerrigan reckons Leeds are in for a tough afternoon on Sunday.

“I think we need to build on what we’ve started,” she said.

“Featherstone are a big, physical side and they are tough to beat, but I think if we pick up from where we left off we’ll be fine.”

Kerrigan, 21, who can also play in the second-row, added: “We are preparing well and training well and we’ve got a lot of new faces in the squad, which is nice to see.

“They’ve filled a big space because we are missing a few players at the moment.

“We’ve got a couple of big games coming up and we’ve got to stay focused and stay in the mindset of being professional.”

The York game was Leeds’ first for 555 days, since their 2019 Grand Final win over Castleford, which completed a league and cup double.

Kerrigan admitted: “Obviously things are going to be a little bit different, but it’s so nice to see some familiar faces we haven’t seen in such a long time.

“We’ve become a close-knit squad and it was odd not having rugby to fall back on, so it’s amazing to be back and to have some kind of normality and routine back as well.”

Sunday’s game, being played behind closed doors at Wakefield, will be streamed live on the RFL’s Twitch internet channel.

“The way the media are getting involved at the minute, we could not boost any more awareness of the women’s game,” Kerrigan said.

“I think it’s good we do get this familiarisation with the public, because we want to show people we are a Leeds Rhinos squad and we are just as good as the men.

“We are two very similar teams in that we are accountable for what we do at the Leeds Rhinos.”

Wakefield Trinity face Castleford in another derby on Sunday, kicking off at 3pm.

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